Refugee and Migrant Stories

“Agent of happiness” Amber sets out on a cross-country road trip surveying the satisfaction of the Bhutanese public, as this crowd-pleasing doco questions whether the Himalayan country really is the happiest place on Earth.

A poetic assemblage of monologues and daft skits form an affectionate ode to Jewish-American identity in this charming quasi-documentary from one of the most important directors of our time.

Sensitive and funny, this semi-autobiographical film follows 13-year-old Chris Wang as he grows up in diaspora, flirting through AOL emojis and navigating family life, with beautiful small details that feel painfully realistic and true to life. 

Brutal, enraging and heartrending, Polish writer-director Agnieszka Holland’s controversial take on the Polish-Belarusian border crisis serves as a startling call to arms in the face of a little-seen humanitarian crisis.

Paul Wolffram’s urgent documentary takes us into the remote highlands of Papua New Guinea and one indigenous woman’s fight against the insidious influence of sanguma – sorcery violence.

Beautifully shot in stunning black and white, this exquisitely realised first feature from Italian filmmaker Tommaso Santambrogio paints a stark and poetic portrait of a Cuban society crippled by mass exodus.

Julio Torres makes a bold directorial debut with a bright, colourful and unique take on the American dream featuring a delightfully manic performance from Tilda Swinton.

A young African immigrant seeking asylum in Paris tries to survive day-to-day in this tense, heartrending piece of social realism anchored by an astonishing performance from first-time actor Abou Sangare.

This urgent, vibrant and incredibly topical debut feature from Palestinian filmmaker Mahdi Fleifel follows two refugee cousins stranded in Athens as they strive to hustle and scam their way to a new life in Germany.

A bold and atmospheric queer romance about two coal miners who find love deep in the bowels of the earth, this stunning feature from upcoming young Vietnamese filmmaker Trương Minh Quý was beautifully shot on 16mm film.